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African American & American History Timeline
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Treaty of Paris
The Treaty of Paris(signed Feb. 10, 1763), formally gain control of Canada and all the French possessions east of the Mississippi. -
Boston Massacre
Boston Massacre:British troops fire into a mob, killing five men and leading to intense public protests (March 5). -
Boston Tea Party
Boston Tea Party:Group of colonial patriots disguised as Mohawk Indians board three ships in Boston harbor and dump more than 300 crates of tea overboard as a protest against the British tea tax(Dec. 16). -
First American abolition society founded in Philadelphia
he Society for the Relief of Free Negroes Unlawfully Held in Bondage, the first American society dedicated to the cause of abolition, is founded in Philadelphia on this day in 1775. The society changes its name to the Pennsylvania Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery and the Relief of Free Negroes Unlawfully Held in Bondage in 1784. Leading Quaker educator and abolitionist Anthony Benezet called the society together two years after he persuaded the Quakers to create the Negro School. -
American Revolution
American Revolution: War of independence fought between Great Britain and the 13 British colonies on the eastern seaboard of North America. Battles of Lexington and Concord, Mass., between the British Army and colonial minutemen, mark the beginning of the war (April 19, 1775). -
Adoption of the Declaration of Independence
Continental Congress adopts the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia (July 4). -
First official flag of the USA
Continental Congress approves the first official flag of the United States (June 14). #BetsyRoss -
Congress adopts the Articles of Confederation
Continental Congress adopts the Articles of Confederation, the first U.S. constitution (Nov. 15). -
Shays's Rebellion
Shays's Rebellion erupts (Aug.); farmers from New Hampshire to South Carolina take up arms to protest high state taxes and stiff penalties for failure to pay. -
The U.S. capital is moved from Philadelphia to Washington, DC
The U.S. capital is moved from Philadelphia to Washington, DC (June 15). U.S. Congress meets in Washington, DC, for the first time (Nov. 17). Gabriel Prosser, an enslaved African American blacksmith, organizes a slave revolt intending to march on Richmond, Virginia. The conspiracy is uncovered, and Prosser and a number of the rebels are hanged. Virginia's slave laws are consequently tightened. -
Marbury v. Madison: Landmark Supreme Court decision
Marbury v. Madison: Landmark Supreme Court decision greatly expands the power of the Court by establishing its right to declare acts of Congress unconstitutional (Feb. 24). Louisiana Purchase: United States agrees to pay France $15 million for the Louisiana Territory, which extends west from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and comprises about 830,000 sq mi (treaty signed May 2). As a result, the U.S. nearly doubles in size. -
Lewis and Clark
Lewis and Clark set out from St. Louis, Mo., on expedition to explore the West and find a route to the Pacific Ocean. (May 14). -
War of 1812
War of 1812: U.S. declares war on Britain over British interference with American maritime shipping and westward expansion (June 18, 1812). Madison's second inauguration (March 4, 1813). British capture Washington, DC, and set fire to White House and Capitol (Aug. 1814). Francis Scott Key writes Star-Spangled Banner as he watches British attack on Fort McHenry at Baltimore (Sept. 13–14, 1814). Treaty of Ghent is signed, officially ending the war (Dec. 24, 1814). -
Missouri Compromise
Missouri Compromise: In an effort to maintain the balance between free and slave states, Maine (formerly part of Massachusetts) is admitted as a free state so that Missouri can be admitted as a slave state; except for Missouri, slavery is prohibited in the Louisiana Purchase lands north of latitude 36°30' (March 3). -
Monroe Doctrine
Monroe Doctrine: In his annual address to Congress, President Monroe declares that the American continents are henceforth off-limits for further colonization by European powers (Dec. 2). -
Gibbons v. Ogden: Landmark Supreme Court decision
Gibbons v. Ogden: Landmark Supreme Court decision broadly defines Congress's right to regulate interstate commerce (March 2). -
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Construction is begun on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, the first public railroad in the U.S. (July 4). -
Indian Removal Act
President Jackson signs the Indian Removal Act, which authorizes the forced removal of Native Americans living in the eastern part of the country to lands west of the Mississippi River (May 28). By the late 1830s the Jackson administration has relocated nearly 50,000 Native Americans. -
Nat Turner's Rebellion
Nat Turner, an enslaved African American preacher, leads the most significant slave uprising in American history. He and his band of about 80 followers launch a bloody, day-long rebellion in Southampton County, Virginia. The militia quells the rebellion, and Turner is eventually hanged. As a consequence, Virginia institutes much stricter slave laws. -
American Anti-Slavery Society
The American Anti-Slavery Society (AASS) (1833–1870) was an abolitionist society founded by William Lloyd Garrison and Arthur Tappan. Frederick Douglass, an escaped slave, was a key leader of this society who often spoke at its meetings. William Wells Brown was a freed slave who often spoke at meetings. By 1838, the society had 1,350 local charters with around 250,000 members. The society was organized at James Forten's house in Philadelphia. -
Texas declares independence
Texas declares its independence from Mexico (March 1). Texan defenders of the Alamo are all killed during siege by the Mexican Army (Feb. 24–March 6). Texans defeat Mexicans at San Jacinto (April 21). -
Trail of Tears
More than 15,000 Cherokee Indians are forced to march from Georgia to Indian Territory in present-day Oklahoma. Approximately 4,000 die from starvation and disease along the “Trail of Tears.” -
Philadelphia nativist riots
The Philadelphia Nativist Riots (also known as the Philadelphia Prayer Riots, the Bible Riots and the Native American Riots) were a series of riots that took place between May 6 and 8 and July 6 and 7, 1844, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States and the adjacent districts of Kensington and Southwark. The riots were a result of rising anti-Catholic sentiment at the growing population of Irish Catholic immigrants. -
Mexican-American War
Mexican War: U.S. declares war on Mexico in effort to gain California and other territory in Southwest (May 13, 1846). War concludes with signing of Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (Feb. 2, 1848). Mexico recognizes Rio Grande as new boundary with Texas and, for $15 million, agrees to cede territory comprising present-day California, Nevada, Utah, most of New Mexico and Arizona, and parts of Colorado and Wyoming. -
Harriet Tubman escapes from slavery
Harriet Tubman escapes from slavery and becomes one of the most effective and celebrated members of the Underground Railroad. -
The Institute for Colored Youth
The Institute for Colored Youth is founded in Southeastern Pennsylvania. It later becomes Cheyney University. -
Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin is published
Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin is published. It becomes one of the most influential works to stir anti-slavery sentiments. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
1854 Congress passes the Kansas-Nebraska Act, establishing the territories of Kansas and Nebraska (May 30). The legislation repeals the Missouri Compromise of 1820 and renews tensions between anti- and proslavery factions. -
Abolitionist John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry
Abolitionist John Brown and 21 followers capture federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Va. (now W. Va.), in an attempt to spark a slave revolt (Oct. 16). -
Civil War
Civil War: Conflict between the North (the Union) and the South (the Confederacy) over the expansion of slavery into western states. Confederates attack Ft. Sumter in Charleston, S.C., marking the start of the war (April 12, 1861). -
Emancipation Proclamation
Emancipation Proclamation is issued, freeing slaves in the Confederate states (Jan. 1, 1863). -
Homestead Act
Homestead Act becomes law, allowing settlers to claim land (160 acres) after they have lived on it for five years (Jan. 1). -
Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg is fought (July 1–3). -
14th Amendment is ratified
Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, defining citizenship (July 9). -
15th Amendment is ratified
Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, giving blacks the right to vote (Feb. 3). -
Crédit Mobilier scandal
Crédit Mobilier scandal breaks, involving several members of Congress (Sept.). -
The Underground Railroad Records (Book)- William Still
The book chronicles the stories and methods of some 649 slaves who escaped to freedom via the Underground Railroad, in which he was an Underground Railroad Agent who helped slaves escape and kept records so relatives could find them later. -
Battle of Little Big Horn River
Lt. Col. George A. Custer's regiment is wiped out by Sioux Indians under Sitting Bull at the Little Big Horn River, Mont. (June 25). -
Statue of Liberty is dedicated
Statue of Liberty is dedicated (Oct. 28). American Federation of Labor is organized (Dec.). -
Mother Bethel A.M.E. Church
Founded on ground purchased by Richard Allen in 1791, this congregation is the mother church of the African Methodist Episcopal denomination. The present structure erected in 1889, replaces three earlier churches on this site -
National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) is founded
National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) is founded, with Elizabeth Cady Stanton as president. Sherman Antitrust Act is signed into law, prohibiting commercial monopolies (July 2). -
Plessy v. Ferguson: Landmark Supreme Court decision
Plessy v. Ferguson: Landmark Supreme Court decision holds that racial segregation is constitutional, paving the way for the repressive Jim Crow laws in the South (May 18). -
Henry L. Phillips- American Negro Historical Society/ Church of Crucifixion
Baptized a Catholic, reared a Moravian, and ordained an Episcopal priest. Phillips transformed the Church of the Crucifixion into a Black cultural center, known for its social outreach. He was a founder of the American Negro Historical Society. -
Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War: USS Maine is blown up in Havana harbor (Feb. 15), prompting U.S. to declare war on Spain (April 25). Treaty of Paris is signed, ending the Spanish-American War (Dec. 10); Spain gives up control of Cuba, which becomes an independent republic, and cedes Puerto Rico, Guam, and (for $20 million) the Philippines to the U.S. -
W.E.B. Du Bois- The Philadelphia Negro Study
An African American scholar, educator, and activist, A founder of the NAACP. In 1896-97 he lived in the College Settlement House at 617 Carver (Rodman) St, while collecting data for his classic study published in 1899, "The Philadelphia Negro."
